


The Soul Is Persistant

by cloudninedreamer



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Gen, Gender-Neutral Frisk, Necromancy, Selectively Mute Frisk, fantasytale
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-22
Updated: 2015-12-01
Packaged: 2018-05-02 22:35:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5266343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloudninedreamer/pseuds/cloudninedreamer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frisk is a necromancer (in training) who just wants to learn to use their abilities but sometimes fate has other plans for adventure.</p>
<p>(Fantasytale AU)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Beginning

Most people feared ghosts and skeletons and zombies. Death, in general, usually terrified people.

Not Frisk. Sure, they’d seen death before, a lot more than a ten year old should have, even though they barely remembered it. Just vague flashes of collapsed bodies, screaming for help, having everything ripped away all at once. Their home, their family, their voice. Well, sort of.

Nearly everyone who spoke to Frisk was met with silence. Of course, the other children in the orphanage took it as a sign of weirdness and picked on them for it, and once they learned they had the capacity for necromancy, the bullying just became worse.

Honestly, there was really only one good thing about their situation. The caretaker, Toriel, perhaps the kindest woman Frisk had ever met. That they could remember, at least.

Frisk climbed out of bed, dressed, and exited the room to the main hall, where children bustled around, talking and playing with each other and all pointedly ignoring Frisk. It suited Frisk well enough. They just took a seat near a wall and removed the heart-shaped clasp from their cloak. It was one of the only things that Frisk had taken with them when they had to leave home. It had been their mother’s, but that was all anyone knew about it. Frisk though could swear that there was something important about it, that they needed it for some reason.

They looked up as they were approached, and smiled when they saw it was Toriel. “Good morning, my child,” she said. “Did you sleep well?” Frisk nodded. “Nightmares?” They shook their head.

Toriel smiled. “Not feeling up to talking right now?” Frisk shook their head again. “Alright. Well, I was thinking that after breakfast, we could work a little bit on your magic. How does that sound?” Frisk smiled back, nodding. “Alright. I have to go. I’ll see you soon, Frisk.”

Breakfast was sitting alone and eating and waiting for Toriel to finishing cleaning up before going out into the yard together.

“I was talking with some witches in town,” Toriel began, “and they said that when they were younger, they needed assistance with channeling their magic, just like you. So I’ve got something for you.” She held out a staff, wooden and crooked like a tree limb with a red orb affixed to the top.

Frisk took it hesitantly, moving it a bit in their hands. It felt… right. “Thank you, Mom,” they said.

Toriel’s smiled brightened. “You’re welcome, my child. Now would you like to try to summon?”

Frisk nodded and thought with all they could, _“Please. If someone can hear me… come here.”_ They noticed the orb of the staff glowing. Their heart leapt. Maybe this was it. Finally—

Then the light spluttered out and nothing happened. Frisk’s heart dropped. Toriel gently rubbed their back. “It’s okay, Frisk. Maybe next time—”

“I just want to get this, Mom,” Frisk interrupted.

Toriel sighed and sat down, patting the ground beside her so Frisk would join her. “It’s alright, my child. Magic ability doesn’t just show up overnight. It took me years to even cause paper to smolder. It’ll come with time.”

“I’ve been practicing for three years, Mom,” Frisk reminded her softly.

“I know,” Toriel sighed. “If I wasn’t just a priestess, perhaps I could do something more.”

Frisk sat silently for a moment. Then they had an idea. “Alphys?”

“Hm? What about her, my child?”

“She’s an alchemist, right? But through alchemy she knows magic so well she could teach others?”

Toriel seemed to catch on. “Frisk…”

“She doesn’t live too far away,” Frisk continued. “Only two towns over. I could—”

“Frisk, you know I can’t leave the orphanage.”

“I know,” Frisk said. “But I could go. And then—”

“Frisk, you’re only ten years old. It’s not safe. I can still teach you, my child. I… I can take good care of you and teach you as best as I can and you will be able to use your magic. I promise.”

“But Mom, how long would that take? A year? Five? I just want to learn.”

Toriel looked down and away sadly. “Very well. If you wish to leave, then I won’t stop you. Alphys lives two towns away. You should be able to reach there in about two days. I would suggest you stop at the next town and rest before making the rest of the trip.”

She stood up. “Would you want some help packing?” Frisk nodded and followed her inside. Frisk hadn’t fully paid attention to all that Toriel packed, but there were a few changes of clothes, a bit of food, and some gold. She put all the items in a knapsack and gave it to Frisk.

“Leave when you are ready. And my child?” Toriel knelt down and pulled them into a tight hug. “You will always have a home here. You and whoever travels with you.” She let go, took a breath, and hurried out of the room as if staying any longer would cause her to stop them.

There wasn’t anything left for Frisk here other than Toriel, and with her gone from the room and likely not wanting to see Frisk again, what was the point of staying around any longer? They slung the knapsack over their shoulder, grabbed their new staff, and exited the building. No one spoke to them. No one asked where they were going. No one tried to stop them. And Toriel was nowhere to be seen.

It was still morning. The sun shone brightly down, the wind blew past, cool but not cold, and all that Frisk could see was the large expanse of paths that would lead them away from the orphanage, their hometown, Toriel, and to the unknown. Honestly, who knew if Alphys even would be successful in teaching them necromancy? And what then, even? What would Frisk do with that ability?

Frisk took a breath. They’d find the answer by the time they returned. But until then, adventure called. And as they started down the path, their heart was filled with determination.


	2. a skeleton

It was quiet. The paths had been empty all throughout Frisk’s journey. Granted, not many people would travel to and from their hometown, but Frisk had been expecting to at least see some signs of life within the few hours they’d been travelling.

It was also kind of lonely. Frisk couldn’t think of the last time they’d been on their own for so long. Even at the orphanage, where the other kids would just leave Frisk to be on their own all day, Toriel would spend time with them, teaching them as best as they could and caring for them. Frisk already missed her. But they couldn’t turn back now.

A sound came from a nearby tree and Frisk stopped in their tracks, staring towards the source of the noise. A man came from behind the tree.

“Well hello, traveler. It’s nice to see someone coming down this road.” Silence. “What’s a young child like you doing all alone?” Frisk still didn’t say anything, and the man huffed. “Fine. Let’s get to it, then.” He pulled out a knife. “Give me your gold and I’ll let you live.”

Frisk jumped at the sight out of it and took off, rushing past the robber and down the path. The robber chased after them. _“Mom! Someone! Help me!”_ But nobody came.

 _“Someone!”_ Frisk cried, vaguely aware of a thrum in their ears. _“Please! Someone! Help me!”_ The robber was gaining on them. Closer… closer… _Strike the ground._ Frisk almost jumped at the sudden thought. Where had _that_ come from? But what else could they do? _“Help me, please!”_ And they slammed their staff to the ground. They continued running, but stumbled and nearly tripped when the ground shuddered.

Frisk stopped and looked back. A huge fissure was in the ground, a bright red light glowing from it. The robber had stopped in his tracks, staring at the crack with wide eyes. And then a bony hand shot out from the earth. The robber made some sort of screeching noise like a banshee and turned tail and ran.

The danger was gone. But still this… whatever they’d summoned was still climbing out of the fissure. And very slowly at that.

All that Frisk could really see was that one hand, skeletal and surrounded by a blue aura. Another hand reached out and Frisk knelt down and grabbed it.

Only for a loud fart-noise to echo through the area. Frisk ignored it for the most part and pulled, helping the… skeleton out of the crack. Once it was out of the ground, the fissure closed up seamlessly.

The skeleton just stood there a moment, not looking at Frisk, until finally it laughed. “the old whoopee cushion in the hand trick,” it said. No, he. The voice was masculine, relaxed, and the skeleton carried himself like a male. “it’s _always_ funny,” he continued. “anyway, you called?”

The skeleton’s question was met with silence. He looked up at Frisk. Something flashed across his face. Worry? Confusion? It was too fast for Frisk to register anything. “you okay, kid?” He finally asked, still looking at them quizzically. Frisk nodded. “not very talkative, are we?” They shook their head. “well, i guess some introductions are in order. i’m sans. sans the skeleton. in case you hadn’t realized that i am in fact just a skeleton.”

Frisk didn’t say anything, just looking at the skeleton. He was dressed in blue with a short hooded cloak around his shoulders and a bright red scarf around his neck. The two were silent for a bit longer until Sans spoke again.

“hey kid?” Frisk made a noise in response. “you didn’t happen to call for two skeletons, did you?” A shake of the head. “yeah… didn’t think so. it’s just me.” Was that sadness? “anyways, it seems like whatever danger was around is gone. so do you still need me around?” Frisk shrugged. “well, kid, if it’s anything, i’d like to stick around. c’mon. let’s keep walking.”

Sans started down the path and Frisk hurried after him, not wanting to get left behind. Sans looked over. “so any particular reason you’re out on your own?” Frisk was still quiet. “well, whatever the reason, i think i should stick with you. just in case anyone tries to bother you.” It was quiet again. “so could i get your name?”

That would probably help. Especially since it seemed Sans would be sticking around. Frisk took a breath. Maybe this time their voice would actually behave. “Frisk,” they said, barely above a whisper.

“so you can talk,” Sans said. “not much though, hm?” Frisk shook their head. “that’s alright. i knew someone like that before. so. frisk. do you mind if i just talk?” They shook their head again. “good. i like filling up silence. do you wanna hear a joke?” Frisk turned to look at him, nodding. “i swear it’s _humerus_.” Frisk snorted, then covered their mouth with shame. “you like jokes? finally. if only papyrus thought that way too…”

Frisk tapped his shoulder and Sans looked over. “what’s that look for? oh, who’s papyrus?” Frisk nodded. “he’s… my brother. wasn’t super fond of jokes and puns. but what can you do?” He was silent, looking at the ground for a minute, before speaking again. “but anyway, did you hear about the guy whose left side was cut off? he’s all right now.”

Frisk couldn’t hold back a slight snicker, even though it was painfully obvious that Sans was changing the subject. Papyrus… Frisk stored the name away. If Alphys was going to teach Frisk to summon the dead properly, then they might as well have someone to summon. Did they even really need training? After all, they’d summoned Sans. But they had no clue how they’d even managed it. Help was still definitely needed.

By the end of the day, the sun was setting, the air was cooling, and the two had reached town. “is this our stop?” Sans asked. Frisk shook their head. “just a stop?” Frisk nodded as they looked around, searching for the inn. Once they found it, they started heading towards it, but Sans stopped. “uh, kid, i don’t think i should be wandering around out in the open. do you think you can get yourself a room and i’ll meet you there?” Frisk nodded. “good. go on. i’ll be there in a minute.”

Frisk wasn’t fully sure why they were already so trusting of Sans. They barely knew him. But at the same time, spending many long hours together all alone on a road talking was a good way to get to know someone and get comfortable with them. Or, well, Sans talked. Frisk hadn’t said a word after telling him their name, and Sans hadn’t pushed them too. No one had ever really done that for Frisk before… it felt nice.

Talking to the innkeeper was an interesting experience. “Do you want a room, kid?” Frisk nodded. “Alright. 50 gold.” Frisk fished the money out of their bag. “Pretty young to be out all on your own, huh?” Frisk shrugged as he gave the money to the innkeeper. “Oh well. Here’s your key.”

Frisk took the key and went to their room. And then almost screamed when they saw Sans was already in. “’sup, kid? what’s that look for? i just took a shortcut is all. Come on, you look tired. You can get the bed.” Sans yawned. “I’ll just sleep on the floor.” And then he promptly faceplanted on the ground. Frisk stared at the skeleton for a minute before going to the bathroom, changed into pajamas and returned to the room and crawled into bed.

Well. A new companion. And it didn’t look like Sans was going anywhere anytime soon. Frisk was honestly pretty grateful, but was still uncertain about what was going to go on. But knowing that at least one other person was on their side… they were filled with determination.


	3. ANOTHER SKELETON

The next morning, Frisk dressed, ate some of the food Toriel had packed, and then proceeded to wake up their new skeleton friend. Or at least try. Sans was lying on the floor, still asleep and snoring, and refusing to move.

Frisk got down and started shaking him. “ugh… no… five more minutes…” Never mind that he’d said that five minutes ago, they really had to get a move on in order to get to Alphys soon. Frisk kept up the shaking. “pap… please. sleep.” And then Sans jumped as if startled and sat up, looking at Frisk. “i meant frisk. not… papyrus… he’s…” Sans sighed and stood up. “i’ll meet you on the outside of town.” Sans was then pacing around the room, looking up to see Frisk still there. “go on, kid.”

So Frisk left. They packed up and checked out and walked to the other side of town without incident. A few strange looks were tossed their way, but no one stopped to ask why they were alone. And when they got to the outside of town, Sans joined them again.

“so, uh, kid?” Frisk looked over to him. “where are we even going? you uh… never really explained why you’re out. on your own. where you were almost attacked.”

Frisk shrugged. Kind of hard to explain things when you couldn’t speak more than one word to someone. “i mean, i understand talking’s not your thing. and that’s fine. but any information you could give would be helpful.”

Frisk took another breath, unsure. Sans was… currently friendly. But could they trust them? Nevertheless, they spoke. “Learning,” they said.

“learning how to summon the dead?” Frisk nodded. “and the person that can teach you is a… town or so over?” Another nod. “wait so did you ever summon anyone before?” Frisk pointed at Sans. “but not before me?” A shake of the head. “wow… well um… kid? so if all goes right then by the time you’re done with your lesson, you’ll have… summoned someone, right? well… do you think you could… could…” Frisk had a pretty good idea what Sans was trying to ask, but the words just didn’t come out of his mouth. “never mind.” Sans finally said.

There was still plenty of idle chatter from Sans as they continued to the next town, but nothing more was said about Frisk’s necromancy abilities. Frisk really wasn’t sure why Sans was so embarrassed about asking them to presumably revive his brother, but Frisk wasn’t going to question it.

They arrived in the next town in the middle of the afternoon. Sans was planning on chilling outside of town until Frisk realized they had no idea where in the town Alphys lived. So they grabbed Sans’ hand when they tried to leave.

“hm? what is it, frisk?”

“…Alphys.”

“Alphys? Is that the person who’s supposed to teach you?” Frisk nodded. “You don’t know where she lives, do you?” Frisk shook his head. Sans sighed, rubbing a hand against his forehead before pulling up his hood and sticking his hands in his pockets. “alright. follow me, kid. hopefully someone knows where she lives.”

Someone did. The first person Sans asked, actually. The stranger pointed in the general direction of the alchemist’s house, and Sans quickly led Frisk to it. “ready, kid?” Frisk nodded, so Sans knocked on the door.

A small crash followed. “Oh! I’ll be right there!” A woman’s voice called. There were a few more clangs inside until the door swung open. Inside stood a young woman with blond hair and glasses, wearing green and balancing multiple test tubes in her hands.

She studied her new visitors. “I… I wasn’t expecting anyone…” she said.

Sans just nudged Frisk forward. “well… frisk came all this way to see you. hopefully you’re not busy?”

 “Well, I had a few things to finish up, but I could put those aside for now—”

“great. see you in a bit, kid.” And Sans walked off.

The woman, Alphys, watched as Sans walked away before looking down at Frisk. “W-Well… Frisk, was it?” Frisk nodded. “Come in, I guess. I wish I’d known you were c-coming, though. Everything’s a mess.”

It was fairly cluttered inside, with lots of test tube racks scattered around, cauldrons heating over fires, bubbling liquid held in beakers and flasks. Paper was strewn about all over the tables and floor, as were inkwells and quills.

Alphys turned to face Frisk. “So… uh… What ca-can I do for you?”

Frisk glanced around before grabbing a random sheet of paper. Alphys quickly jumped to stop them. “H-Hey! Not that one. That… uh… is important.” She took the paper from their hands. “You need to write?” Frisk nodded. Alphys grabbed a different piece of paper from the floor and handed it over. “There. Use that.”

Frisk quickly scribbled their response. _“Toriel sent me to learn necromancy.”_

“Toriel sent you all alone? T-Then again, you had your… f-friend… but… necromancy. Not m-many people learn necromancy. Are you sure?”

Frisk nodded and Alphys pulled two chairs from random desks, gesturing for Frisk to sit in one and herself sitting in a different one.

“So… well, the basics, I guess. When you use magic, you have to use the energy of your soul, determination. And… uh… using it… um… when you have… r-really strong emotions, you usually use determination. But… you just have to get used to the feeling of y-your soul, really. It’s n-not too hard, though. Just think of a really strong emotion. Like when you feel _really_ happy or sad…”

 _Or scared._ Frisk realized, remembering when they’d summoned Sans. They remembered the thrum in their ears. They hadn’t known what it was back then. But now… determination… it flowed through them, and they stood up.

Alphys stopped her ramblings. “Oh, do you w-want to try? Well… it looks like you have a staff to… h-help channel your magic, so…” she kicked a few things away, including the chairs, so there was a clean spot of floor. “T-Try something simple, I guess. Too much all at once would be exhausting.”

Simple. Well, Frisk had already summoned one skeleton, and nothing bad had come from that. What was the harm in trying to summon another? _“Papyrus.”_ They called, feeling that strong thrum of power, of determination. _“Your brother needs you.”_ And they struck the ground with their staff.

Just like before, a fissure opened up, glowing bright red. Alphys was staring at Frisk in… disbelief, it looked like, when a hand came from the ground. It was surrounded by an orange aura, and covered in a bright red glove.

Frisk dropped down to help the newcomer, but it turns out that wasn’t necessary. Unlike Sans, it seemed this one was all too eager to exit from wherever they came, quickly grabbing ahold of the ground and hoisting themselves out. The crack sealed shut, leaving the skeleton to slowly climb to his feet.

He was tall. Taller than Alphys and Frisk and no doubt Sans. He wore armor on his torso, still fairly shiny but also rusted, red gloves, boots, and a cape that was ragged and torn.

Alphys made a squeaking noise and Frisk turned to look at her. “Frisk… I’m impressed, but… I said to s-summon something simple. Not a human skeleton!”

Said skeleton stepped up to Frisk. Alphys made another nervous squeak. Frisk just looked up at the skeleton. “HUMAN!” Alphys all but collapsed as the skeleton yelled. “ARE YOU THE ONE WHO SUMMONED ME?” Frisk nodded, slightly nervous. Until the skeleton’s face broke into a large grin. “WELL, YOU’RE IN LUCK! FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM HERE TO HELP YOU WITH WHATEVER IT IS YOU NEED!”

Sans hadn’t talked much about Papyrus, but he had mentioned that Papyrus was a kind soul. And it was definitely showing through. “YOUR NAME IS FRISK, HUMAN?” Another nod. “WELL, FRISK, WHAT DO YOU NEED MY HELP WITH?”

“T-They were just trying to summon something,” Alphys explained. “They’re… l-learning. I suppose you… could go?”

Frisk grabbed Papyrus’ hand with a shake of their head, and Papyrus said, “FORGIVE ME, OTHER HUMAN, BUT THEY CALLED ME BY NAME, SO THEY MUST NEED SOMETHING.”

“By n-name?” Now Alphys was staring at Frisk too. “But why would you need to summon someone sp-specifically?”

Frisk could answer that. Toriel knew Alphys well and Sans knew Papyrus (not that Frisk knew Sans very well, but that was beside the point) so maybe they could just say… “Sans.” They finally managed.

Alphys was still understandably confused, but Papyrus wasn’t. “SANS?” He gasped. “YOU KNOW MY BROTHER? WHERE IS HE?” Frisk shrugged. Sans was somewhere. It probably wouldn’t be long before he came back, anyway.

And speak of the devil, there was a knock on the door. “Shoot,” Alphys muttered, hurrying past the two to answer the door. “Hello?”

“hey,” a familiar voice answered. “i was just coming to check on the kid.”

“Oh. Uh…” Alphys looked back at Papyrus nervously before saying. “C-Come in.”

Sans stepped through the door. “heh, what happened here?” He asked, surveying the mess. “an earth—” and suddenly he went silent when he saw who was standing next to Frisk. “p-papyrus?”

Papyrus moved past Frisk towards his brother. “SANS!”

Sans pulled his hood off, getting another squeak from Alphys, but he ignored it as he just looked at his brother as if seeing a ghost.

“BROTHER?” Papyrus asked, stopping in front of him and kneeling to be at his height. “YOU’RE SO QUIET. IS EVERYTHING OKAY?”

Frisk then realized that Sans was nearly crying. He nodded quickly to reassure his brother. “now it is,” he said and pulled Papyrus into a hug before breaking down. Papyrus returned the hug, holding Sans just as tightly.

“sorry, pap,” Sans said, wiping away his tears. “I just missed you a ton. A skele- _ton._ ”

Papyrus broke the hug in an instant, turning to face Frisk. “NEVER MIND! HUMAN! PLEASE RETURN ME BACK WHERE I CAME FROM—WAIT, ARE YOU LAUGHING?” Frisk was, actually, though mostly at Papyrus’ reaction. “OH NO.”

Frisk couldn’t help the laughter among other things. After all, seeing such a sweet reunion between brothers… it filled them with determination.


	4. A Dream

As the skeletons continued their reunion, Alphys was looking a bit faint from where she was standing. “There are two sk-skeletons in my house,” she said. “And t-they were summoned by a ten-year-old child.”

Frisk looked over at her. She noticed them and said, “Oh, I’m f-fine, Frisk. Just… a bit overwhelmed. It’s n-nothing.”

Frisk would’ve questioned her more (silently, of course), but was then immediately distracted by a nearby skeleton. “LITTLE HUMAN!” Frisk made a noise in reply, turning to see that Papyrus was standing right in front of them. “I’D LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR BRINGING MY BROTHER AND I BACK. EVEN IF WE ARE JUST BONES NOW.”

Frisk smiled at him and nodded. “AND SO BECAUSE OF THIS, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL OFFER MY FRIENDSHIP TOWARD YOU.”

He was beaming at Frisk, with unfiltered joy. Who were they to say no? “Okay. Let’s be friends.” Out of the corner of their eye, Sans nearly jumped at the sound of their voice, and honestly, Frisk was surprised as well. It’d come out with practically no effort, a sensation that was rare and practically miraculous in itself.

Papyrus didn’t take much, if any, notice in the reactions to Frisk speak. Instead his face brightened even more than before. “GREAT! NOW I CAN GIVE YOU FRIENDSHIP HUGS!”  Before Frisk could even think about protesting, Papyrus picked them up and held them tight in his arms.

Frisk tried to pull away at first, but… it wasn’t that bad. Besides, Papyrus was so happy… so Frisk tolerated the hug until Sans cleared his throat. “um, bro, i think the kid’s had enough hugging.”

Papyrus stopped the tight hug. “WHOOPS. APOLOGIES, HUMAN.” And then Frisk was transferred to being set on his hip. Like that was much better. Frisk tapped Papyrus’ shoulder. “HM? WHAT IS IT, HUMAN?”

“Down?” Frisk asked. Again the word slipped out with ease, and Papyrus quickly complied.

Alphys had been watching from a distance, and then chose this moment to reenter the conversation. “So, just so I-I can clear things up, not too long ago, you summoned… h-him.” She pointed at Sans. Frisk nodded. “And just now, you summoned h-him. That’s t-two skeletons. And how long ago?”

“a day and a half-ish,” Sans answered for Frisk.

“That takes a lot of d-determination and energy… maybe… do you th-think you can help me?” Frisk stared at her blankly for a moment. “Oh, you want to know what with. Of c-course. So… I don’t know i-if Toriel’s told you… but I’m the Royal Alchemist? I e-experiment and… well… for one of th-them, I need necromancy magic… s-so… it involves r-raising the dead in their b-body, instead of bones or sp-spirits. Could you h-help me?”

It wasn’t like Frisk had any other plans. All they’d set out to do was learn necromancy. Or at least how to actually use it. So… they nodded, and Alphys smiled. “Great! I need to f-finish a few experiments and get some n-notes and… oh, I left them a-at Undyne’s…” She blushed a bit. “I kn-know it’s a walk away, but c-could we m-meet there? She lives just a t-town over and there’s a gr-graveyard there, so…” Frisk nodded again.

“R-Really? Great. I… I’ll be there soon. Uh…” Alphys hurried to the door and opened it. “I’m sorry. I n-need to find the notes and I… I c-can’t do anything with o-others around so…” She gestured widely and Frisk took the hint and exited.

Sans pulled up his hood and threw Papyrus’ cape over his brother’s head before leading him out the door. “sorry, bro. don’t want people knowing we’re skeletons.”

“SANS!” Papyrus exclaimed as they walked to the edge of town. “FIRST YOU STEAL MY CAPE, THEN YOU BLIND ME WITH IT?”

“relax. it was just a little piece. i was just so _cape-tivated_ by it.”

Frisk laughed and Papyrus huffed. Once they were out of town, Sans pulled Papyrus’ cape down and removed his own hood.

“so frisk,” Sans said, “we need to figure out a game plan.”

“AREN’T WE GOING TO SEE THIS ‘UNDYNE’ PERSON?”

“yeah, but the sun’s setting. kid needs to sleep.”

So it was. Frisk hadn’t really paid attention, being a bit distracted by the fact they were sneaking two skeletons (one very large and loud) out of town.

But it seemed Papyrus already had a solution. “EASY. I’LL JUST CARRY THE HUMAN WHILE THEY SLEEP.”

Sans spoke first. “but bro, you can’t carry two people.”

“CARRY TWO? WHAT DO YOU—SANS, OH MY GOD, YOU DON’T NEED TO SLEEP.”

“but i like sleep,” Sans protested.

“SANS!” Papyrus chided, and then turned to Frisk. “HUMAN, WHAT DO YOU SAY?”

Frisk thought through their options. Logically, they shouldn’t have been trusting. Sans was very much an enigma, and Papyrus had been around for barely over an hour. And yet, for some reason, they trusted both of them. And also there was the fact that they hadn’t planned on a very long journey and so didn’t have that much gold…

After weighing their options for a minute, Frisk made their decision. They stuffed their staff in their bag, put it back on, and lifted their arms up to Papyrus in the universal signal for “up”.

Papyrus grinned and picked them up. “COME ON, SANS. WE’RE GOING.” And he started walking with a grumbling Sans trudging behind. “DON’T WORRY, FRISK. I’LL STAY QUIET WHILE YOU’RE ASLEEP. SLEEP WELL.” And then all at once, it was silent save for footsteps and the occasional sound of an animal.

Frisk rested their head against Papyrus’ shoulder, letting their arms hang down their back. From this vantage point, Frisk could easily see Sans following Papyrus, looking at Frisk with… suspicion? But as soon as Sans noticed Frisk’s eyes on him, he looked away.

It was getting a bit late. For ten-year-old Frisk, anyway. So it wasn’t too long before they fell asleep and dreamed.

* * *

_It was a dark place. Everything was pitch black that Frisk could see. They wandered around aimlessly, searching for something, anything. They walked around for quite a bit until they saw light in the distance. They began running then towards the light, slowing as it got nearer._

_From a distance, Frisk noticed that the lit space wasn’t empty. Someone was standing there, covered in all shadows, despite standing in direct light. Frisk couldn’t make out a face or eyes or any other kind of characteristics. They slowly approached, and the figure whipped around to (presumably) face Frisk as soon as they were in the light._

_“Who are you?” The figure asked._

_“Frisk,” Frisk replied._

_“H-How did you get here? It shouldn’t be possible. No one’s been here in a long time…”_

_“I don’t know,” Frisk said, “I was just here.”_

_“Just like that?” Frisk nodded. The figure paced around a bit. “I guess… it’s nice to see someone again. It’s been so long.”_

_“What’s your name?” Frisk asked._

_“Forgot it long ago,” the figure answered_

_“And… are you… a spirit?”_

_“Am I dead? Yes. For how long, I don’t know. It feels like forever, but it may as well have been a year. All I have is this light, and it’s not a sun.”_

_Frisk shrugged. What more was there to say? Before they could think of anything else, they felt the room get lighter._

_“You’re waking up,” the spirit said. “Don’t fight it. It doesn’t hurt… I think. I’ll… I’ll see you again.” And Frisk’s vision went white._

* * *

They blinked. The sun was in the sky, and light filtered through the trees.

“OH. FRISK, ARE YOU AWAKE?”

“well, if they weren’t, they are now,” Sans said.

Frisk nodded and felt themselves get set down. It wasn’t a very far distance; Papyrus was sitting when Frisk awoke.

“When—” Frisk felt their words choke up, and tried again. “When did we get here?”

Sans turned to shoot Frisk a look. Probably because he’d barely heard them speak a word, but Papyrus answered, “ABOUT FOUR HOURS AGO. OVERALL THE TREK TOOK SIX HOURS, WITH SANS TRYING TO TAKE A NAP AT EVERY INTERSECTION. IF HE’D KEPT HIS PACE, WE WOULD’VE ARRIVED SOONER.”

So now they were outside Undyne’s village. Frisk removed their staff from their bag and stood up to leave. “LET’S GO, SANS! IT’S TIME TO MEET UNDYNE!” He picked Sans up under his arm, and Frisk giggled when they noticed Sans fell asleep almost instantly.

But still. The thought of meeting Undyne… a new person and Alphys’ friend… filled them with determination.


End file.
